Rack for newspaper-files



(No Model.)

H. D. WEST.

RACK FOR NEWSPAPER FILES.

N0..321,1.64. gggatented hne 30. 1,88 5.

Winwses:

UNITED STATES ATENT Fries.

HORATIO D. \VEST, OF ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA.

RACK FOR NEWSPAPER-Fl LES.

.JPECIFICATION fOrmin-g part of Letters Patent No. 321,16 dated June 30,18.85.

Application filed January 22, 1885. (No model.) 7

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HORATIO D. \VEST, of St. Paul, in the county ofRamsey and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Racks for Newspaper- Files, of which the following is aspecification.

My invention relates to a rack for newspaper-files; and it consists in aseries of bars secured to the under side of a suitable support andgrooved or cut away on their side faces to receive and support betweenthem the back bar of a paper file or holder, space being left betweenthe lower edge of the bars for the papers to pass between and hang down.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of afile-rack constructed in accordance with myinvention and made in theform of a desk; Fig. 2, a vertical transverse section of the same; Fig.3, an end view of the rack proper, and Fig. 4 a similar View showing thebars made of sheet metal.

Heretofore it has been customary to provide newspaper-files with ringsor eyes and to hang the same upon hooks, or to lay them flat upon atable or shelf. Such plans are inconvenient, require considerable space,do not permit a given file to be readily selected or taken from therest, and involve rapid destruction of the papers in handling the files.

My invention is designed to obviate these difficulties, and to permitthe files to be selected, taken from, and returned to the rack with thesame facility that a book may be taken from abook-case. Thefiles andtheir respective places are numbered or otherwise marked to insure thereturn of the files to their places, and there is preferably provided acatalogue or index to guide the user in withdrawing or replacing a file.The form of the case is immaterial, and in fact it is not essential thatany case be employed, a shelf or upper support being sufficient. Iprefer, however, to employ a case or cabinet, and to make the same inthe form of a desk, in order to protect the papers from dust and toafford a convenient place to lay the papers upon while reading them ormaking extracts therefrom.

A indicates such a desk, and B the rack combined therewith, the deskbeing shown with an inclined top and with a raised back bearing a listof papers with the numbers of the files and of their places in the rack.The rack consists of a series of parallel bars, a, each havingsubstantially the form of an inverted T in cross-section, or eachgrooved in its side faces and wider at 1135 lower than at its upperside, said bars being securely fastened to the under side of a board orsupport, 0, beneath'the desk-top, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The barsare placed with their lower edges a short distance apart, as shown inFigs. 1 and 3, thus leaving space between them for the papers to passbetween and hang down, while above said. lower edge the space isconsiderably wider by reason of the peculiar form of the bars, and isconsequently adapted to receive the files D, which may be of any commonpattern or construction.

In practice the form of file or holder shown is preferred; but said fileconstitutes no part of my invention.

The bars a are preferably made of wood, but may be made of sheet metalor any other suitable material, or grooves maybe cut in asolid plankinstead of using separate bars. If made of sheet metal, a number of barscan be formed of a single sheet by folding the same in either of theforms indicated in Fig. 4.

The bars, formed in either of the ways explained and applied to thesupport 0, produce a series of grooves or guides, b, which are numberedor otherwise marked, as shown in Fig. 1, and serve each to receive andhold a file, D, which may be inserted and withdrawn longitudinally.

The files are numbered to correspond with their respective grooves orplaces, and, if desired, an index, E, may be employed to show where agiven paper may be found or belongs. Such index may be convenientlyplaced upon a back, F, rising above the desk-top, as shown in Fig. 1.

Two racks may be placed back to back in one case, or the case may bemade of circular or polygonal form, the bars being arranged in pairsand. the pairs being arranged radial to the center of the cabinet. Inother words, the

form and arrangement of the case or cabinet is wholly immaterial, theinvention consisting in the means for supporting the files rather thanin the design or arrangement of the case.

It is essential to the practical use of this rack for newspapers thatthe grooves and bars occupy a substantially horizontal position, inorder to permit the paper to be hung down between them withoutinterference.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is- 1. A rack fornewspaper-files having one or more substantially horizontal grooves,each formed with a narrow longitudinal opening at its lower side and awider opening or space above said lower side, substantially as and forthe purpose set forth.

2. A rack for paper-files provided with a series of substantiallyhorizontal bars arranged in pairs, the two bars of each pair beingparallel to each other, and said bars being set closer together at theirlower edges than at a point above the same, substantially as shown anddescribed.

3. The herein described rack forpaper-files,

consisting of a desk or case, A, provided with a board or support, 0,and with a series of bars, a,-secured to said board, with their loweredges closer together than the upper portion of the bars, substantiallyas shown.

4. In combination with bars a and intermediate grooves or spaces, 1),each bearing a distinguishing mark, a series of files, D, each marked tocorrespond with one of the grooves or spaces.

5. In combination with the grooves or spaces 1) and the filcs D, eachbearing a distinguishing mark, an index, E,- bearing the names of thepapers contained. in the files, together with the distinguishing marksof the respective files and grooves.

HORATIO D. VEST. Witnesses:

CHAS. W. AMES, WVM. L. STRONG.

